Texas Human Resources Code Title 2, Chapter 42 - Regulation Of Certain Facilities, Homes, And Agencies That Provide Child-care Services

SUBCHAPTER A GENERAL PROVISIONS

• Texas Section 42.001 - Purpose
  The purpose of this chapter is to protect the health, safety, and well-being of the children of the state who reside in child-care facilities by...
• Texas Section 42.002 - Definitions
  In this chapter: (1) "Child" means a person under 18 years of age. (2) "Division" means the division designated by the department to carry out...
• Texas Section 42.003 - Reference To Child-care Institution
  A reference in law to a "child-care institution" means a general residential operation. Added by Acts 2009, 81st Leg., R.S., Ch. 720 (S.B. 68), Sec....

SUBCHAPTER B ADMINISTRATIVE PROVISIONS

• Texas Section 42.004 - Confidentiality Of Investigation Information
  A photograph, videotape, audiotape, or other audio or visual recording, depiction, or documentation of a child that is made by the department in the course...
• Texas Section 42.021 - Division Designated
  (a) The department may designate a division within the department to carry out responsibilities the department may delegate or assign under this chapter. The department...
• Texas Section 42.0211 - Safety Specialists, Risk Analysts, And Performance Management
  (a) The division shall employ at least one specially trained investigation safety specialist, whose duties include the duty to: (1) review and evaluate the intake...
• Texas Section 42.023 - Annual Report
  (a) The department shall prepare an annual written report regarding the department's activities under this chapter. (b) The annual report shall include: (1) a report...
• Texas Section 42.024 - Administrative Procedure
  Chapter 2001, Government Code applies to all procedures under this chapter except where it is contrary to or inconsistent with the provisions of this chapter....

SUBCHAPTER C REGULATION OF CERTAIN FACILITIES, HOMES, AND AGENCIES

• Texas Section 42.025 - Searchable Database
  (a) The department shall maintain on the department's Internet website a searchable database that includes the name, the address, and any identification number, as applicable,...
• Texas Section 42.041 - Required License
  (a) No person may operate a child-care facility or child-placing agency without a license issued by the department. (b) This section does not apply to:...
• Texas Section 42.042 - Rules And Standards
  (a) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules to carry out the provisions of this chapter. (b) The department shall conduct a comprehensive review of all...
• Texas Section 42.0421 - Minimum Training Standards
  (a) The minimum training standards prescribed by the executive commissioner under Section 42.042(p) for an employee, director, or operator of a day-care center, group day-care...
• Texas Section 42.0422 - Restraint And Seclusion
  A person providing services to a resident of a general residential operation, including a state-operated facility that is a residential treatment center or a general...
• Texas Section 42.0423 - Children's Product Safety For Certain Nonresidential Child-care Facilities
  (a) This section applies only to a licensed day-care center, licensed group day-care home, or registered family home. (b) A children's product is presumed to...
• Texas Section 42.0424 - Child Safety Alarms In Vehicles
  (a) In this section, "electronic child safety alarm" means an alarm system that prompts the driver of a vehicle to inspect the vehicle to determine...
• Texas Section 42.0425 - Assessment Services
  (a) The executive commissioner by rule shall regulate assessment services provided by child-care facilities or child-placing agencies. A child-care facility or child-placing agency may not...
• Texas Section 42.0426 - Training Of Personnel
  (a) A licensed facility shall provide training for staff members in: (1) the recognition of symptoms of child abuse, neglect, and sexual molestation and the...
• Texas Section 42.04261 - Other Training Of Personnel: Child-placing Agencies And Day-care Centers
  (a) Notwithstanding Section 42.0426(a)(1), a child-placing agency or day-care center shall provide training for staff members in prevention techniques for and the recognition of symptoms...
• Texas Section 42.0427 - Parental Visitation
  All areas of a licensed facility must be accessible to a parent of a child who is receiving care at the facility if the parent...
• Texas Section 42.0428 - Policies Addressing Sexual Abuse And Other Maltreatment Of Children
  (a) Each child-placing agency or day-care center shall adopt and implement a policy addressing sexual abuse and other maltreatment of children. (b) A policy required...
• Texas Section 42.043 - Rules For Immunizations
  (a) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules for the immunization of children in facilities regulated under this chapter. (b) The department shall require that each...
• Texas Section 42.04305 - Vaccine-preventable Disease Policy Required
  (a) In this section: (1) "Facility employee" means an employee of a child-care facility. (2) "Vaccine-preventable diseases" means the diseases included in the most current...
• Texas Section 42.0431 - Enforcement Of Screening Requirements Relating To Vision, Hearing, And Other Special Senses And Communication Disorders
  (a) The executive commissioner, after consultation with the Department of State Health Services, shall adopt rules necessary to ensure that children receiving care at a...
• Texas Section 42.044 - Inspections
  (a) An authorized representative of the department may visit a facility regulated under this chapter or a registered family home during operating hours to investigate,...
• Texas Section 42.0441 - Inspection Results For Certain Nonresidential Child-care Facilities
  Immediately after completing a monitoring inspection of a licensed day-care center, licensed group day-care home, or registered family home under Section 42.044, the authorized representative...
• Texas Section 42.04411 - Inspection Results And Exit Conference For Residential Child-care Facilities
  (a) On completion of an inspection of a residential child-care facility under Section 42.044, the inspector shall hold an exit conference with a representative of...
• Texas Section 42.04412 - Interference With Inspection; Court Order
  (a) A person may not interfere with an investigation or inspection of a facility or family home conducted by the department under this chapter. (b)...
• Texas Section 42.0442 - Coordination Of Inspections; Elimination Of Duplicative Inspections
  (a) The department shall coordinate monitoring inspections of licensed day-care centers, licensed group day-care homes, and registered family homes performed by another state agency to...
• Texas Section 42.04425 - Inspection Information Database
  (a) If feasible using available information systems, the department shall establish a computerized database containing relevant inspection information on licensed day-care centers, licensed group day-care...
• Texas Section 42.0443 - Coordination Of Fire Safety And Sanitation Inspections
  (a) The department may not inspect a licensed day-care center, licensed group day-care home, or registered family home for compliance with the department's fire safety...
• Texas Section 42.04431 - Enforcement Of State Law By County Or Municipality
  (a) A municipality or a county may enforce state law and rules adopted under state law concerning fire safety standards at a licensed group day-care...
• Texas Section 42.0445 - Required Background Search Of Central Registry Of Reported Cases Of Child Abuse Or Neglect
  (a) Before the department issues a license, listing, registration, or certification under this subchapter, the department shall search the central registry of reported cases of...
• Texas Section 42.0446 - Removal Of Certain Investigation Information From Internet Website
  The executive commissioner shall adopt rules providing a procedure by which the department removes from the department's Internet website information with respect to a child-care...
• Texas Section 42.0447 - False Report; Criminal Penalty
  (a) A person commits an offense if the person knowingly or intentionally files a complaint alleging that a child-care facility or registered family home failed...
• Texas Section 42.0448 - Notification Of Family Violence Calls
  The department shall notify a child-placing agency of each family violence report the department receives under Article 5.05, Code of Criminal Procedure, that: (1) occurred...
• Texas Section 42.0449 - Required Actions After Notice Of Family Violence Call
  The executive commissioner shall adopt rules specifying the actions that the department, an independent foster home, and a child-placing agency shall take after receiving notice...
• Texas Section 42.045 - Records
  (a) A person who operates a licensed or certified facility shall maintain individual child development records, individual health records, statistical records, and complete financial records....
• Texas Section 42.0451 - Database Of Foster Homes; Information Provided To Department Of Public Safety
  (a) The department shall maintain a database of licensed foster homes and verified agency foster homes including the current address for each licensed or verified...
• Texas Section 42.0452 - Foster Parent Rights And Responsibilities Statement
  (a) The department shall develop a statement that lists the rights and responsibilities of a foster parent in a foster home or an agency foster...
• Texas Section 42.046 - Application For License, Listing, Or Registration
  (a) An applicant for a license to operate a child-care facility or child-placing agency or for a listing or registration to operate a family home...
• Texas Section 42.0461 - Public Notice And Hearing In Certain Counties: Residential Child Care
  (a) Before the department may issue a license or certificate for the operation or the expansion of the capacity of a foster group home or...
• Texas Section 42.0462 - Waiver Of Notice And Hearing Requirements
  To protect the safety and well-being of residents and employees of a general residential operation that provides comprehensive residential services to children who are victims...
• Texas Section 42.047 - Consultations
  (a) The department shall offer consultation to potential applicants, applicants, and license, listing, registration, and certification holders about meeting and maintaining standards for licensing, listing,...
• Texas Section 42.048 - Licensing
  (a) The department shall issue a license after determining that an applicant has satisfied all requirements. (b) When issuing a license, the department may impose...
• Texas Section 42.049 - Liability Insurance Required
  (a) A license holder shall maintain liability insurance coverage in the amount of $300,000 for each occurrence of negligence. An insurance policy or contract required...
• Texas Section 42.050 - License Renewal
  (a) A license holder may apply for renewal of a license in compliance with the requirements of this chapter and department rules. (b) The application...
• Texas Section 42.051 - Initial License
  (a) The department shall issue an initial license when a facility's plans meet the department's licensing requirements and one of the following situations exists: (1)...
• Texas Section 42.052 - Certification, Listing, And Registration
  (a) A state-operated child-care facility or child-placing agency must receive certification of approval from the department. The certification of approval remains valid until the certification...
• Texas Section 42.0521 - Deposit Of Fees
  The fees authorized by this chapter and received by the department shall be deposited in the general revenue fund. Added by Acts 1985, 69th Leg.,...
• Texas Section 42.0522 - Public Advertising Of Family Homes
  (a) A family home may not place a public advertisement that uses the title "registered family home" or any variation of that phrase unless the...
• Texas Section 42.0523 - Listing Of Relative Child-care Providers
  (a) A child-care provider who only provides child care under Chapter 313, Labor Code, to children related to the provider may list the provider's home...
• Texas Section 42.053 - Agency Foster Homes And Agency Foster Group Homes
  (a) An agency foster home or agency foster group home is considered part of the child-placing agency that operates the agency foster home or agency...
• Texas Section 42.0531 - Secure Agency Foster Homes And Secure Agency Foster Group Homes
  (a) The commissioners court of a county or governing body of a municipality may contract with a child-placing agency to verify a secure agency foster...
• Texas Section 42.0535 - Required Information For Verification
  (a) A child-placing agency that seeks to verify an agency home or an agency group home shall request background information about the agency home or...
• Texas Section 42.0536 - Transfer Of Agency Foster Home
  (a) An agency foster home that is verified by a child-placing agency may transfer to another child-placing agency only if, before the date of the...
• Texas Section 42.0537 - Caregiver Training Requirement
  (a) The department shall include a provision in each contract with a child-placing agency with whom children in the managing conservatorship of the department are...
• Texas Section 42.054 - Fees
  (a) The department shall charge an applicant a nonrefundable application fee for an initial license to operate a child-care facility or a child-placing agency. (b)...
• Texas Section 42.055 - Sign Posting
  (a) Each child-care facility shall post in a location that is conspicuous to all employees and customers a sign that includes: (1) a description of...
• Texas Section 42.0551 - Posting Of Employee List
  (a) Each day-care center, group day-care home, and family home shall post a list of all current employees at the center or home in accordance...
• Texas Section 42.056 - Required Background And Criminal History Checks; Criminal Penalties
  (a) In accordance with rules adopted by the executive commissioner, the director, owner, or operator of a child-care facility, child-placing agency, or family home shall,...
• Texas Section 42.0561 - Information Relating To Family Violence Reports
  Before the department may issue a license or registration for a foster home or a child-placing agency may issue a verification certificate for an agency...
• Texas Section 42.057 - Drug Testing
  (a) Each residential child-care facility shall establish a drug testing policy for employees. A residential child-care facility may adopt the model employee drug testing policy...
• Texas Section 42.058 - Competitive Bidding Or Advertising Rules
  (a) The executive commissioner may not adopt rules restricting competitive bidding or advertising by a license holder or registration holder except to prohibit false, misleading,...
• Texas Section 42.059 - Required Affidavit For Applicants For Employment With Facility Or Registered Family Home
  (a) An applicant for temporary or permanent employment with a licensed facility or registered family home whose employment or potential employment with the facility or...
• Texas Section 42.060 - Carbon Monoxide Detectors
  (a) In this section, "carbon monoxide detector" means a device that detects and sounds an alarm to indicate the presence of a harmful level of...
• Texas Section 42.062 - Certain Employment And Service Prohibited
  A person may not be employed as a controlling person or serve in that capacity in a facility or family home if the person is...
• Texas Section 42.063 - Reporting Of Incidents And Violations
  (a) In this section, "serious incident" means a suspected or actual incident that threatens or impairs the basic health, safety, or well-being of a child....
• Texas Section 42.064 - Information Regarding Gang-free Zones
  Each day-care center shall, in accordance with rules adopted by the executive commissioner, distribute to parents and guardians of children who attend the center information...

SUBCHAPTER D REMEDIES

• Texas Section 42.065 - Administering Medication
  (a) In this section, "medication" means a drug that may be obtained with or without a prescription, excluding a topical ointment obtained without a prescription....
• Texas Section 42.0704 - Enforcement Policy
  (a) The executive commissioner by rule shall adopt a general enforcement policy that describes the department's approach to enforcement of this chapter. (b) The enforcement...
• Texas Section 42.0705 - Range Of Penalties
  The department shall revoke or suspend a license or registration, place on probation a person whose license or registration has been suspended, or reprimand a...
• Texas Section 42.071 - Suspension, Evaluation, Or Probation Of License Or Registration
  (a) The department may suspend the license of a facility or the registration of a family home that has temporarily ceased operation but has definite...
• Texas Section 42.0715 - Costs Charged To Facility Or Family Home
  The department may charge a facility or family home for reimbursement of the reasonable cost of services provided by the department in formulating, monitoring, and...
• Texas Section 42.072 - License, Listing, Or Registration Denial, Suspension, Or Revocation
  (a) The department may suspend, deny, revoke, or refuse to renew the license, listing, registration, or certification of approval of a facility or family home...
• Texas Section 42.073 - Emergency Suspension And Closure Of A Facility Or Family Home
  (a) The department shall suspend a facility's license or a family home's listing or registration and order the immediate closing of the facility or family...
• Texas Section 42.074 - Injunctive Relief
  (a) The department may file suit in a district court in Travis County or in the county in which a facility or family home is...
• Texas Section 42.075 - Civil Penalty
  (a) A person is subject to a civil penalty of not less than $50 nor more than $100 for each day of violation and for...
• Texas Section 42.076 - Criminal Penalties
  (a) A person who operates a child-care facility or child-placing agency without a license commits a Class B misdemeanor. (b) A person who operates a...
• Texas Section 42.0761 - Criminal Penalty For Operating Day-care Center Without Qualified Director
  (a) An owner or operator of a day-care center commits an offense if the owner or operator knowingly operates the day-care center: (1) without a...
• Texas Section 42.077 - Notice Of Action Against Facility Or Family Home
  (a) If the department revokes or suspends a facility's license or a family home's listing or registration, the department shall publish notice of this action:...
• Texas Section 42.078 - Administrative Penalty
  (a) The department may impose an administrative sanction or an administrative penalty against a facility or family home licensed, registered, or listed under this chapter...

SUBCHAPTER F REGULATION OF EMPLOYER-BASED DAY-CARE FACILITIES

• Texas Section 42.079 - Cease And Desist Order
  (a) If it appears to the department that a person who is not licensed, certified, registered, or listed under this chapter is operating a child-care...
• Texas Section 42.151 - Definitions
  In this subchapter: (1) "Employer-based day-care facility" means a day-care facility that is: (A) operated by a small employer to provide care to not more...
• Texas Section 42.152 - Permit Required
  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b), a small employer may not operate an employer-based day-care facility unless the employer holds a permit issued by...
• Texas Section 42.153 - Application; Initial Inspection And Background And Criminal History Checks
  (a) The department shall develop and implement a streamlined procedure by which a small employer may apply for and be issued a permit to operate...
• Texas Section 42.154 - Conversion Of License
  (a) The department shall develop and implement a procedure by which a small employer that holds a license to operate a child-care facility that is...
• Texas Section 42.155 - Parent Or Guardian Within Immediate Vicinity
  An employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter may provide care only for a child whose parent or guardian: (1) is an employee of the...
• Texas Section 42.156 - Caregiver-to-child Ratio
  An employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter shall maintain a caregiver-to-child ratio of at least one caregiver to every four children receiving care. Added...
• Texas Section 42.157 - Minimum Standards
  The department shall encourage an employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter to comply with the minimum standards applicable to a child-care facility licensed under...
• Texas Section 42.158 - Caregiver Qualifications
  A caregiver employed by an employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter must: (1) be at least 18 years of age; (2) have received a...
• Texas Section 42.159 - Background And Criminal History Checks Required
  (a) In accordance with rules adopted by the executive commissioner, a small employer shall, when applying for a permit under this subchapter and at least...
• Texas Section 42.160 - Applicability Of Other Law
  Except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, an employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter is not a child-care facility, as defined by Section 42.002,...
• Texas Section 42.161 - Reporting Of Incidents And Violations
  An employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter and each employee of that facility are subject to the reporting requirements of Section 42.063 to the...
• Texas Section 42.162 - Authority To Conduct Limited Inspections
  (a) The department may inspect an employer-based day-care facility operating under this subchapter if the department receives a complaint or report of child abuse or...

SUBCHAPTER G REGULATION OF TEMPORARY SHELTER DAY-CARE FACILITIES

• Texas Section 42.163 - Suspension, Denial, Or Revocation
  (a) The department may suspend, deny, or revoke a permit issued to a small employer under this subchapter if the employer does not comply with...
• Texas Section 42.201 - Definitions
  In this subchapter: (1) "Shelter" means a supervised publicly or privately operated shelter or other facility that is designed to provide temporary living accommodations to...
• Texas Section 42.202 - Permit Required
  (a) Except as provided by Subsections (b) and (e), a shelter may not provide shelter care unless the shelter holds a permit issued by the...
• Texas Section 42.203 - Application; Initial Inspection And Background And Criminal History Checks
  (a) The department shall develop and implement a streamlined procedure by which a shelter may apply for and be issued a permit to operate a...
• Texas Section 42.204 - Conversion Of License
  (a) The department shall develop and implement a procedure by which a shelter that holds a license to operate a child-care facility that is issued...
• Texas Section 42.205 - Caregiver Qualifications And Training; Child-to-caregiver Ratios
  (a) The executive commissioner shall adopt rules that specify the minimum: (1) qualifications and training required for a person providing child care in a shelter...
• Texas Section 42.206 - Background And Criminal History Checks Required
  (a) In accordance with rules adopted by the executive commissioner, a shelter shall, when applying for a permit under this subchapter and at least once...
• Texas Section 42.207 - Applicability Of Other Law
  Except as otherwise provided by this subchapter, a shelter day-care facility operating under this subchapter is not a child-care facility, as defined by Section 42.002,...
• Texas Section 42.208 - Reporting Of Incidents And Violations
  A shelter day-care facility operating under this subchapter and each employee of that facility are subject to the reporting requirements of Section 42.063 to the...
• Texas Section 42.209 - Authority To Conduct Limited Inspections
  (a) The department may inspect a shelter day-care facility operating under this subchapter if the department receives a complaint or report of child abuse or...
• Texas Section 42.210 - Suspension, Denial, Or Revocation
  (a) The department may suspend, deny, or revoke a permit issued to a shelter under this subchapter if the shelter does not comply with the...

Last modified: September 28, 2016